When an AI workflow loses access to a connector, restore the authorized connection and reconcile the interrupted work before resuming. A new login does not roll back earlier writes or tell you which requests completed. Restarting the entire task can repeat actions that already succeeded.
The operator needs a per-item recovery record: what was attempted, what the destination confirms and what remains unknown. That record determines where to continue. The connection’s status is one input to the decision, not the workflow’s completion status.
- 01Identify the access failure.Expired access, revoked access and insufficient permission are different conditions.
- 02Reconcile prior actions.Read the destination or job record before repeating a write with an uncertain outcome.
- 03Resume by item.Continue known unfinished work rather than assuming the whole batch failed together.
01 — Recover from the last known item stateRecover from the last known item state
A connector is the integration through which the agent accesses another system. Reconnecting may restore credentials, but the workflow still has its own state. Use the table to classify each affected item, keeping request and destination identifiers where available. These are editorial recovery choices, not a promise that every service exposes the necessary lookup.
| Item state | Evidence available | Recovery action |
|---|---|---|
| Never attempted | No request was issued for this item. | Continue after checking access and current task relevance. |
| Explicitly rejected | The response establishes rejection for this attempt. | Correct the access condition, then retry within scope. |
| Pending job | A service identifier points to unfinished work. | Inspect the existing job before submitting another. |
| Confirmed write | The destination confirms the intended item. | Retain evidence; do not repeat merely because access expired later. |
| Unknown outcome | The request was attempted but no reliable result is known. | Reconcile using identifiers; escalate if the state cannot be resolved. |
| No longer authorized | The owner revoked access or changed the task boundary. | Keep completed evidence and obtain a new scoped decision if needed. |
02 — Read the error before calling it expiryRead the error before calling it expiry
RFC 6750, section 3.1 uses invalid_token for tokens that are expired, revoked, malformed or otherwise invalid. It distinguishes insufficient_scope for requests needing greater privileges. A bare authentication failure therefore does not prove the token simply aged out.
RFC 6749, section 6 describes refreshing an access token when a refresh token was issued. It requires validation and does not permit requesting scope beyond the original grant. Reconnection should use an authorized mechanism and the intended account; broadening access is a separate decision.
These protocol rules establish access behavior, not the outcome of prior business actions. The time-limit reference separates credential validity from task deadlines. An access fix may be successful even when the useful time for the original task has passed.
03 — Resume a partially completed workflowResume a partially completed workflow
Consider a hypothetical agent saving a set of reports to a shared review location. Some writes have confirmed destination identifiers. One request was submitted but its response was lost. Later requests are rejected because access is no longer valid. The batch has several states; “connector disconnected” cannot summarize them all.
After restoring access, read back the confirmed items and inspect the uncertain item using its operation or destination reference. If the service exposes a pending job, follow that job. If it confirms rejection before any write, a new attempt may be appropriate within the task’s authorization. If no reliable lookup exists, preserve the uncertainty for an owner decision.
The tool-error reference covers routing a failure response. This recovery record adds the surrounding item history, which is what prevents a single reconnection from becoming an indiscriminate replay.
04 — Check the reconnected account and destinationCheck the reconnected account and destination
A login screen can restore a valid session for the wrong workspace or account. Verify the intended identity, resource and required scope before dependent work resumes. A successful read of some folder does not establish access to the folder named in the original task.
Preserve the existing task boundaries. A revoked connection may require an owner to reauthorize it, rather than an agent searching for another credential that happens to work. The agent identity guide covers credential ownership; this article concerns recovery after access has interrupted work.
Keep secrets out of the recovery record. Account identifiers, operation references and outcome evidence are useful; raw access or refresh tokens are not required to explain which item remains unfinished.
05 — Keep reconnection separate from replay permissionKeep reconnection separate from replay permission
For each item, record the intended operation, last attempt, observed outcome, lookup evidence and next action. If a service supports a documented duplicate-prevention mechanism, retain its original operation key as required by that contract. Do not invent a new key and assume it refers to the earlier request.
An idempotent operation is one whose intended effect does not multiply when the same request is repeated. RFC 9110, section 9.2.2 limits automatic retries of non-idempotent requests unless the client knows repetition is safe or the original was not applied. The exact service contract still matters.
Finish with a recovery summary that distinguishes completed, resumed and unresolved items. If part of the task no longer makes sense, stop that part and state why. Restoring access is a maintenance event; deciding what work should still happen is the operator’s workflow decision.
06 — DecisionWhat to do next
Resume from evidence, item by item.
Restore the intended access, reconcile prior attempts and continue the work that remains authorized and useful. Keep unresolved outcomes visible instead of replaying the entire workflow.
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